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Frost Nova

Frost Nova

Active Skill · Defensive · Wizard

  • 5 Runes
  • From level 4

Effect

Cooldown: 11 seconds

Blast nearby enemies with an explosion of ice and freeze them for 2 seconds.

Runes

5 Runes

  • Shatter

    from level 12 · Cold damage · Proc coefficient 0.167

    A frozen enemy that is killed has a 100% chance of releasing another Frost Nova.

  • Cold Snap

    from level 18 · Cold damage · Proc coefficient 0.167

    Reduce the cooldown to 7.5 seconds and increase the Freeze duration to 3 seconds.

  • Frozen Mist

    from level 28 · Cold damage · Proc coefficient 0.05

    Frost Nova no longer freezes enemies, but instead leaves behind a mist of frost that deals 915% weapon damage as Cold over 8 seconds.

  • Deep Freeze

    from level 41 · Cold damage · Proc coefficient 0.167

    Gain a 10% bonus to Critical Hit Chance for 11 seconds if Frost Nova hits 5 or more enemies.

  • Bone Chill

    from level 51 · Cold damage · Proc coefficient 0.167

    Enemies take 33% more damage while frozen or chilled by Frost Nova.

The proc coefficient scales the chance of on-hit effects (e.g. legendary powers, gems, Life per Hit) for each hit of the skill. Game files, version 2.8.0.

Frost Nova

Frost Nova bursts an ice explosion around you that freezes nearby enemies and briefly leaves them unable to act. As an emergency and control spell it buys you room to teleport out of a crowd, set up a burst, or simply pin dangerous foes in place.

The runes shift the emphasis between control and damage. Cold Snap shortens the cooldown and lengthens the freeze, making the nova a reliable always-available control tool that meshes superbly with cooldown-oriented builds. Bone Chill, by contrast, turns it into a damage amplifier, since frozen enemies take noticeably more damage, ideal as the opener for your big hits. If you clear packs, Shatter helps, because slain frozen enemies can trigger another nova and create chain reactions.

From Shatter to Bone Chill

Unruned, the nova freezes nearby enemies for 2 seconds on an 11 second cooldown.

  • Shatter (level 12): every frozen enemy that dies releases another Frost Nova.
  • Cold Snap (level 18): cooldown 7.5 seconds, freeze 3 seconds.
  • Frozen Mist (level 28): no more freeze, instead 915% weapon damage as Cold over 8 seconds.
  • Deep Freeze (level 41): 10% Critical Hit Chance for 11 seconds if 5 or more enemies are hit.
  • Bone Chill (level 51): 33% more damage against enemies frozen or chilled by the nova, the most common pick in practice, followed by Frozen Mist.

Automatic novas

Two items trigger Frost Nova without a button press. The ring Halo of Arlyse makes your Ice Armor reduce melee damage by 50–60% and casts a nova every time you take 10% of your Life in damage. The source Winter Flurry gives enemies killed by Cold damage a 25% chance to release a nova and also boosts Hydras inside a Blizzard.

Frost Nova in a close-range setup

Frost Nova works around you, so it suits close-range Wizards running Audacity and Explosive Blast. Teleport gets you in or out, and Galvanizing Ward adds safety. With Elemental Exposure, Frozen Mist can contribute a Cold stack, and Disintegrate benefits from the Bone Chill amplification like any other damage.

by eRnstl